Week 5 of a 52 week Quiet Time series entitled “Living As One New Man.”

“God Protects His People”

Living As One New Man #5

Read Ephesians 1:11-14

A recurring theme in Ephesians is the magnificence of God’s plan for man’s salvation.  Paul mentions here that the Jews were the first to share in the plan of salvation, followed by the Gentiles.  Through Christ (and only through him), the whole world has access to an incredible, rich relationship with the God of the universe!  It makes me so grateful to think that I am included in this, and very hopeful to know that as His child, I am His treasured possession!  No matter who we are, if we belong to Him, God has placed his seal of ownership on us, marking us as His own.  Why is that so significant?  Well, there are too many reasons to list, let me illustrate one.

Not long ago, we made the choice to put our house in Tacoma up for rent.  When we relocated to Seattle’s eastside, we believed it would sell quickly.  As it turns out, it sat for a long time, forcing us to make some tough decisions.  The rental market is good, so we had no doubt we could find a renter.  The thing is, I know from experience that renters feel differently about their house than owners do.  Those who own a house generally take care of it and protect it better than those who don’t…just sayin’!

Paul says that we belong to God.  He marks us and He owns us.  He says that the Holy Spirit represents a seal, signifying that while we are here on earth, we are His property, when we die He has reserved for us a special place in heaven with Him!  Of course He allows us to go through tough times, and lets us make decisions that may affect our lives in may ways.  However, the Bible teaches that God fiercely (not just sort of) protects His people.  In the end, no matter what we may experience, He will take care of us.  Consider the following scriptures:

Joshua 1:5 – He’s there for us our entire lives

Psalm 18:2 – He is our protector, shield of refuge

Psalm 56:9 – He sticks up for us against our enemies!

Psalm 57:1 – He protects us in times of trouble and uncertainty

Psalm 91:3-7 – He is our help in times of danger…we shouldn’t worry

Psalm 121:1-8 – He’s always there, not just sometimes

Psalm 124:1-5 – We need God’s protection for any chance of real victory

Isaiah 41:10 – His protection relieves us of fear

John 10:28-30 – His protection is powerful and solid, not precarious

1 Cor. 10:13 – He protects us during times of temptations…we are not alone!

2 Tim. 4:17-18 – His protection provides strength when we are weak

2 Thess. 3:3 – He protects us from Satan…we are never alone in the fight!

Reflections

Meditate on being a fiercely protected possession of God – let it strengthen you!

Week 4 of a 52-week Quiet Time series entitled “Living As One New Man”

“God’s Greatest Desire”

Living As One New Man #4

Read Ephesians 1:5-10

A person’s greatest desire is what drives them.  When we feel strongly about something, it influences everything we do – our thoughts, attitudes and actions reflect whatever it is.  If you want to see what really motivates a person, look at where they spend their time and energy.  There you will find the desire of their heart.  In this passage, one of the richest in the Bible, we learn that God’s greatest desire is to transform sinful people into His holy and blameless children!

Paul tells us that he chose us a long time ago, and put the most beautiful plan into action.  That plan was from his own “pleasure and will,” his glorious grace was “lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding.”  Why?  So ALL things in heaven and on earth can be brought together into perfect unity through Christ!  I just wrote all that, but I’m positive I don’t fully understand all of it.  It’s simply remarkable, inspiring, unbelievable and hard to fathom.

The term “reconciliation” means to bring together parties who are estranged from each other.  God’s greatest desire is total reconciliation of sinners, and his plan, repeated all through the Bible, involves three main steps.

First, He reconciles US to Him.  This is the process of conversion, because our lives are “converted” from sinful, alienated people into a relationship with Him.  I remember studying the Bible, working through my sin, apologizing to people and God, and doing the hard work of bringing my life into His Lordship.  I was lost, He found me, now I can stand before Him as His son, reconciled (not perfect) in my relationship with Him – very humbling indeed.

Second, He reconciles US to EACH OTHER.  It makes sense that our own conversion has to precede this, for without the wisdom and power of the cross, we have no idea how to forgive each other, work things out, and be truly unified in our relationships.  In the New Testament church, the reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles was a very powerful display of what can happen when God changes people’s hearts. This simply cannot be accomplished by men.

Third, God reconciles US ALL into His creation called the church – an assembly of reconciled sinners.  Sorry to break it to you, but the church is NOT a man-made institution (although man tries mightily to change it!).  It is God’s creation, and His purpose was to provide the world with a tangible display of His greatness and wisdom.  The church is the culmination of His plan, and one of the many tools He uses to bring more sinners in for more reconciliation.

I believe this is what drives God.  He is consumed by it…are we?

Reflections

1.  How do you fit into God’s grand plan?  Is your relationship with God what drives you?  Further, are you highly motivated to help others get reconciled?

2.  How do you view the church?  To God, it’s a BIG deal – what about to you?

Week 3 of a 52 week Quiet Time Series entitled, “Living As One New Man”

“He Chose Me!”

Living As One New Man #3

Read Ephesians 1:4

Why does it feel so great to be chosen?  I’m not exactly sure, it just does.  Imagine how you would if your spouse, reflecting back on their decision to be married to you, said “you know, I dated a lot of people, and actually had a list of people I really wanted to marry, but in the end, I had to settle for you”!  Or imagine going to a final job interview and the employer said, “we searched high and low for the best candidate, but in the end, they were all gone so we came back to you – you’re hired”!  You may have a spouse and a job, but you wouldn’t have the extreme joy of knowing they chose you because YOU are the one they desired.  It just feels different when we are pursued relentlessly out of love.

After telling us that God has blessed us with “every spiritual blessing in Christ,” Paul says God chose us before the creation of this world, to be set apart as His righteous, holy people.  He has actually “adopted” us as His own sons and daughters – we are His!  We are not children he had to settle for, His best workable option, or just happened to be at the end of a short list of ways to affect a lost world.  We were always a vital part of His plan, and He has always relentlessly and stubbornly pursued us out of a love so intense that we couldn’t really fathom it if we tried!  That’s the truth about our relationship with Him as disciples.

It’s interesting – to be adopted you have to be available.  Most of the time, children who are available for adoption have been abandoned by someone.  They were given up on or disappointed by someone, until they were sought out and chosen by parents who desire to give them a life and a real chance at success.  Paul tells us this is what God has done for us.  The world promised us hope and fulfillment, success, fame or satisfaction.  Instead of delivering that, the world miserably abandoned us – it always does.  If that were the end of the story, what a sad and tragic tale it would be.  However, when we respond to God’s love as he dramatically swoops in to rescue us, the story gets rewritten.  We now belong to the God of the universe.  We have real hope and lasting significance.  More than that, we have the extreme joy of knowing He has desired us from the very start!  We are HIS CHOSEN SONS AND DAUGHTERS!

Reflections

1.  Do you realize how badly God has always wanted a relationship with you?  What stops you from feeling the joy of being HIS CHOSEN POSESSION?

2.  For further study and encouragement, read the following passages: Romans 8:29-30, Colossians 3:12, 1 Thess. 1:4, and 2 Thess. 2:13.

Week 2 of 52-week Ephesians Quiet Times Series entitled “Living As One New Man”…

“Lift Up Your Eyes”

Living As One New Man #2

Read Ephesians 1:3

When you think of all the blessings given to you by God, what comes to your mind?  I am instantly filled with thoughts of my marriage to Karla, my family, our friends, our job, finances, investments, health, a great golf swing (well, not so much), a roof over our heads, and much more.  For sure, all of these are gifts for which I need to be very grateful.  However, they are material blessings, and not what Paul had in mind here.

Paul reminds us that God deserves our praise for blessing us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms.  That phrase “heavenly realms” occurs five times in Ephesians (1:3, 20, 2:6, 3:10, 6:12).  What does that really mean?  According to F.F. Bruce, the heavenly realm is that place where Christ resides.  It means, “even if they (Christians) live on earth in mortal bodies, they can enter into the good of their heavenly inheritance here and now through the ministry of the Spirit.”  The blessings we receive in Christ include being chosen in Him a long time ago, being adopted by God as His sons and daughters, redemption, forgiveness of our sins, the gift of the Spirit, and hope and glory forever!  Did you get all that?  I will talk more about those things in the coming weeks, but for now, it is enough to think about the reality that we live here on earth, but have a vital existence right now in the heavenly realms.  It is where our calling really is, where we find real security, where our hope really resides, and where our hearts really belong.

I have been so blessed by God with earthly riches.  But, I have to be very careful to not let anything I have or lack here on earth really affect me. This earth and everything in it is temporary and fleeting.  It may seem solid, but it will pass away before I know it.  This is why the Bible reminds us to keep lifting our eyes to heaven and focusing on the spiritual, eternal realms (Phil. 3:19-21, Col. 3:1-4).

The lure of Satan is to get us distracted and consumed with everything in this world, so much so that we forget that to be really effective for God, we have to live here in the world, but intentionally set our minds on things above.  For us, it literally is a matter of life and death.  As C.S. Lewis said, “The Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have begun thinking less of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this. Aim at heaven and you get earth thrown in; aim at earth and you get neither.”  I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Reflections

1.  How often do you think of things in the spiritual realms?  Are you more grateful for earthly or spiritual blessings?  What can you do to lift your eyes and set your heart on things above?

I have written an Ephesians Quiet Time Series entitle “Living As One New Man.”  I will post a new lesson each Monday morning through 2012, as we walk through one of the richest books in the Bible – ENJOY!

“A God-Centered Faith”

Living As One New Man #1

Read Ephesians 1:1-3

     “Keep your eyes on God!”  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that as a Christian.  I suppose that’s because it’s right.  It sounds so easy, until you humbly consider how often we get it wrong.

     Paul starts the book of Ephesians with the challenge to praise God for the abundance of blessings he has heaped upon us.  We will talk at length about the blessings we have in Christ, but unless we begin with the proper object of our praise, the rest of the book (or even our faith) will be distorted.  To “praise” means to give someone proper admiration and commendation – when it comes to our faith, it clearly ALL belongs to God.  In fact, the Bible is radically God-centered.  It begins and ends with God, not us.  To take it further, the only reason we have any hope at all is because God first decided to bless us.  This is the essence of the gospel.

     Martyn Lloyd-Jones observes, “Much of the trouble in the Church today is due to the fact that we are so subjective, so interested in ourselves, so egocentric. That is the peculiar error of this present century…We must not start by examining ourselves and our needs microscopically; we must start with God, and forget ourselves.” 

     Like I said, easier said than done!  It takes us a nanosecond to put our own needs first, to get our eyes fixed on our own problems or needs, to put a leader on a pedestal (where nobody but God belongs), to give someone in the church the keys to our happiness, to believe we make all the difference as a leader, to believe our own efforts create or undo success in the church, or to believe our persuasive words matter more than the scriptures.  Sadly, we believe we matter more than we actually do.  In fact, it even can even influence how we lead others to salvation in Christ.  We start with a “Seeking God” study, which can easily put the focus on what we are/are not doing to pursue a relationship with God.  Perhaps we need to start with a “Seeking Man” study, and put the emphasis where it rightly belongs – on a totally selfless, sacrificial, loving God who, from time immemorial, has relentlessly and painfully (for him) pursued us! 

     As hard as it may be, let us always remember that the ONLY reason we have what he do is because God decided to bless us.  What is the proper response to that?  To give him all praise and glory, and steadfastly remind ourselves to put God at the center of all we do!

Reflections

1.  How easy is it for you to put someone/something at the center of your faith?  How does it affect you?  Does it change you view of God’s blessings?  Consider ways that you can constantly remind yourself to keep God at the center of your Christian life!

The Herbsts in Zurich

Here’s a picture of Christian and Sabine Herbst in Zurich.  Below it is a pic of me and Danny Chow in Beijing.

Lynne and I are actually in China and Hong Kong for a week, returning January 6 to the new year in Seattle.  In two more days we will have reconnected to precious friends from all over China, having spend New Year’s in Guanzhou for their 20 year anniversary.  Hard to believe it was in 1991 that a few intrepid souls moved there to start God’s work anew.

In June, we’ll be teaching at the European Bible School–we’ll get to see Berlin folks, including the Herbsts, who we’ve known for over 20 years.  They were young disciples with the Marks’ in Munich back in the day.

Not everyone gets a chance to see these wonderful parts of our family, so I’m being a “Blessings Witness” to tell you about them.

Danny and Me in China's capital

Such an amazing blessing that in fact, we are connected to brothers and sisters all over the world!

I was so inspired by Alex’s blog yesterday, and completely agree with him that the zeal and faith of the younger people in our church is so inspiring!  It made me think of another group in our church – the older people!  Yeah, I’m talking about anyone over 35 or so, especially those folks that have been around awhile, seen the ups and downs of the Christian life.  I’m talking about the people who have read the Bible cover to cover multiple times, heard thousands of sermons, been a part of many different ministries, and seen several leaders.  They’ve raised their families in the church, studied the Bible with all kinds of folks, and even seen some of them leave the faith.  It is their zeal and faith that inspires me and calls me higher.

Last week we had the pleasure of spending an evening with Mack and Zoe Strong, two people in the thick of life.  They have two wonderful young boys, Zoe is in the thick of a graduate program, and Mack is busy with his football analyst career.  Despite all of that, they serve as deacons, Bible Talk Leaders, study the Bible with people all the time, and basically serve in any way asked of them…awesome.

I just got an email from Ellen Soter, who makes sure the Eastside announcements are sent out every Wednesday evening.  Actually, that is just a SMALL part of what she does over here.  We’ve known the Soters for years, and it seems that with each passing year they seem to be serving more and more…wow.

Last night we had dinner with Mike and Laura Fouts, whom we’ve known for about 15 years.  We actually served in the ministry with them years ago, and it’s so good to be reunited with them!  It was so awesome to sit and talk with them about life, the ministry, family and so much more.  As always, Mike filled me in on the people he is studying the Bible with…incredible.

Today we are having Greg and Lisa Brumley and their family over to watch the Huskies win the Alamo Bowl.  They are another couple we’ve known for years, and are thrilled to be building a close friendship with them.  They have been Christians since the Ice Age (sorry guys), been in many different churches, been a part of about a hundred Bible Talks.  I’m not sure they hear anything “new” these days, but their faith is so contagious and they love the church so much…amazing.

We are so grateful to serve on the eastside with such faithful people.  Sure, we are older, balder, and many are getting pretty gray!  However, in an era where too many people seem to lose their idealism as they get older, our church is full of people who continue to grow in their faith, no matter what life throws their way.  People like the Tachers, Pflaumers, Storz’, Johnsons, Fawcetts, Stirrets, Brumleys (all of them!), Webbs, Gammons, and so many more.

Thank you for your faith and inspiration – we are all blessed because of it!

Daren

Here is a picture of one of “my” quiet time benches at Jack Block Park in West Seattle looking across Elliott Bay toward downtown.

A blessings that I cherish tremendously is the ability to spend time with God in a beautiful setting, a place to read my bible and walk and talk with him and admire his creative power. What an inspiring artist God is. Seattle has so many such places. I have had the privilege of living in many extraordinary places around the country: New York, Boston, Denver, Boulder, Redondo Beach/LA and now Seattle for the last 14 years. Carol and I are so happy in Seattle that we can’t imagine ever leaving. I have a long list of special places to pray and keep finding new spots all over the city.

My wish for all of us in 2012 is that we will be devoted to intimacy in our prayer life and walk with God in a new and empowering way. I hope that our consistent connections with him bring him great joy and give us the strength we need to answer his callings for our daily lives.

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every find of evil. May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.” I Thess. 5:16-23